Editing Universal Life Church

{{Short description|Religious organization}}
{{Distinguish|Universal Life Church Monastery}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2011}}
{{Infobox Christian denomination
| name = Universal Life Church
| image = Universal Life Church logo.png
| caption = Logo of the Universal Life Church
| main_classification =
| polity =
| founder = [[Kirby J. Hensley]]
| founded_date = May 2, 1962
| founded_place = [[Modesto, California]], U.S.
| headquarters = [[Modesto, California]], U.S.<ref>{{cite web |title=Contact Universal Life Church|url=http://www.ulchq.com/contact.htm|publisher=Universal Life Church|access-date=28 January 2018|location=Modesto, CA|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180128222435/http://ulchq.com/contact.htm |archive-date=January 28, 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref>
| separated_from =
| leader =
| associations =
| area = Worldwide
| separations =
| congregations =
| members = 18,000,000+ ordained<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.modbee.com/living/article3118424.html|title=Universal Life Goes On|access-date=August 2, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170802164454/http://www.modbee.com/living/article3118424.html|archive-date=August 2, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>
| website = [http://www.ulchq.com www.ulchq.com] <!-- do not replace with ulc.org; that is a different organization of similar name. See the Talk page for details -->
}}

The '''Universal Life Church''' ('''ULC''') is an American [[non-denominational]] religious organization founded in 1962 by [[Kirby J. Hensley]].<ref name="J. R. Lewis">James R. Lewis, ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=lk8_ARNz-dYC&pg=PA769 The Encyclopedia of Cults, Sects, and New Religions]'' (2001), p. 769-70.</ref><ref name="Handbook">U.S. Department of the Army, ''Religious Requirements and Practices: A Handbook for Chaplains'' (2001), p. VII-47-49.</ref> Its creed is "Do that which is right". The Universal Life Church advocates for [[Freedom of religion|religious freedom]], offering legal [[ordination]] to become a [[Minister (religion)|minister]] free of charge to anyone who wishes to join. The ULC has ordained ministers from a wide range of backgrounds and beliefs, including [[Atheism|atheists]], [[Christians]], [[Judaism|Jews]], [[Modern Paganism|Neopagans]] and [[Wicca]]ns.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Hoesly|first=Dusty|date=2015-10-23|title='Need a Minister? How About Your Brother?': The Universal Life Church between Religion and Non-Religion|journal=Secularism and Nonreligion|language=en|volume=4|issue=1|doi=10.5334/snr.be|issn=2053-6712|doi-access=free}}</ref>

The ULC's popularity stems in part from rising interest in having friends or family officiate weddings; surveys reported that one-quarter to one-half of couples married in 2020 had a friend or family member officiate their wedding ceremony.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://apnews.com/article/lifestyle-religion-weddings-4fcbe095c77babeb79fc2464d5af0574|title=Officiating at a wedding? Prepare, share, get out of the way|first=Larry|last=Lage|date=July 13, 2021|website=AP News}}</ref> This trend has attracted a range of celebrities to become ordained including [[Adele]], [[Benedict Cumberbatch]], [[Ian McKellen]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/shortcuts/2018/apr/04/the-wedding-singer-adele-and-the-rise-of-celebrity-ministers|title=The wedding singer: Adele and the rise of celebrity ministers|last=Wolfson|first=Sam|date=2018-04-04|website=the Guardian|language=en|access-date=2018-09-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190212211043/https://www.theguardian.com/music/shortcuts/2018/apr/04/the-wedding-singer-adele-and-the-rise-of-celebrity-ministers|archive-date=February 12, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Stevie Nicks]], [[Conan O'Brien]], and [[Steven Tyler]].<ref name="nytpersonal">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/27/us/couples-personalizing-role-of-religion-in-wedding-ceremonies.html|title=Couples Personalizing Role of Religion in Wedding Ceremonies|work=The New York Times |date=June 27, 2015 |access-date=2018-09-16|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180916093331/https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/27/us/couples-personalizing-role-of-religion-in-wedding-ceremonies.html|archive-date=September 16, 2018|url-status=live |last1=Freedman |first1=Samuel G. }}</ref>

Appellate courts in [[Virginia]] have held that they will not recognize marriages solemnized by ULC ministers,<ref name="cites">[https://archive.today/20140204064154/http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=7017921713823239189 ''Oswald v. Oswald''], 2013 N.Y. Slip Op. 02811 (N.Y. App. Div. 2013); [https://archive.today/20130125211109/http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=12281627198304413759 ''Ranieri v. Ranieri''], 539 N.Y.S.2d 382 (N.Y. App. Div. 1989); [https://archive.today/20130124161045/http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=10683767922184616328 ''State v. Lynch''], 272 S.E.2d 349 (N.C. 1980); [https://archive.today/20130124163218/http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=3242933869117036293 ''Cramer v. Commonwealth''], 202 S.E.2d 911 (Va. 1974); Robert E. Rains, ''Marriage in the Time of Internet Ministers: I Now Pronounce You Married, But Who Am I To Do So?'', 64 U. Miami L. Rev. 809, 830 - 34 (2010).</ref> with litigation on the question ongoing as of 2025,<ref name="Augusta">{{Cite web|url=https://augustafreepress.com/news/local-ministers-file-discrimination-suit-against-augusta-county-staunton-court-clerks/|title=Ministers file discrimination suit against Augusta County, Staunton|first=Chris|last=Graham|work=Augusta Free Press|date=May 23, 2025}}</ref> while appellate courts in [[North Carolina]] have held that such marriages may be voidable.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Howell |first=Cheryl |date=2019-07-10 |title=North Carolina Case Law Indicates Marriages Solemnized in North Carolina by Persons "Instantly Ordained" by the Universal Life Church Are Not Valid |url=https://civil.sog.unc.edu/marriages-solemnized-in-north-carolina-by-universal-life-church-ministers-are-not-valid/ |access-date=2025-09-18 |website=On the Civil Side {{!}} UNC Chapel Hill School of Government |language=en}}</ref> Courts in [[Indiana]],<ref name="Center">{{cite web |date=2016-03-31 |title=Center for Inquiry Inc v. Marion Circuit Court Clerk |url=https://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-7th-circuit/1672800.html |access-date=2020-05-11 |website=Findlaw}}</ref> [[Mississippi]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=MATTER OF LAST WILL & TEST. OF BLACKWELL, 531 So. 2d 1193 - Miss: Supreme Court 1988 - Google Scholar |url=https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=10257896994249431968 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180930231509/https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=10257896994249431968 |archive-date=September 30, 2018 |access-date=September 1, 2019}}</ref> [[Pennsylvania]],<ref>{{cite web |title=''O'Neill v Bucks County'' |url=http://www.ulccaselaw.com/caselawHTML/ONEILL.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170807013257/http://www.ulccaselaw.com/caselawHTML/ONEILL.html |archive-date=2017-08-07 |access-date=2017-08-28}}&nbsp;{{small|(1.45&nbsp;MB)}}</ref> [[Texas]],<ref>''Ctr. for Inquiry, Inc. v. Warren'', Civil Action No. 3:18-CV-2943-B at *20 (N.D. Tex., 2019).</ref> and [[Utah]]<ref>{{Cite web |date=January 17, 2002 |title=Universal Life Church v. Utah, 189 F. Supp. 2d 1302 |url=https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=17066217380962386551 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180930231459/https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=17066217380962386551 |archive-date=September 30, 2018 |access-date=November 1, 2017 |publisher=[[United States District Court for the District of Utah|Dist. Court, D. Utah]]}}</ref> have specifically held such marriages to be valid, while government officials in [[Alabama]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.al.com/news/huntsville/2015/02/post_45.html|title=Couples looking to marry in Alabama don't need a judge or church; a friend can do the job|publisher=Huntsville Real-Time News|date=January 13, 2019|access-date=October 9, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191009194216/https://www.al.com/news/huntsville/2015/02/post_45.html|archive-date=October 9, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> [[South Carolina]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ulccaselaw.com/AGOpinionsHTML/SC%20AGOpinion%201971.html |title=South Carolina Office of the Attorney General Opinion |access-date=2019-09-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208144105/http://www.ulccaselaw.com/AGOpinionsHTML/SC%20AGOpinion%201971.html |archive-date=2015-12-08 |url-status=live }}&nbsp;{{small|(6.08&nbsp;KB)}} (11 January 1971).</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ulccaselaw.com/AGOpinionsHTML/SC%20AGOpinion%201973.html |title=South Carolina Office of the Attorney General Opinion |access-date=2019-09-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151208144110/http://www.ulccaselaw.com/AGOpinionsHTML/SC%20AGOpinion%201973.html |archive-date=2015-12-08 |url-status=live }}&nbsp;{{small|(5.02&nbsp;KB)}} (29 March 1973)</ref> and [[Washington (state)|Washington]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.atg.wa.gov/ago-opinions/letter-opinion-1971-no-117|title=Letter Opinion 1971 No. 117 &#124; Washington State|website=www.atg.wa.gov|access-date=2019-08-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190809025939/https://www.atg.wa.gov/ago-opinions/letter-opinion-1971-no-117|archive-date=2019-08-09|url-status=live}}</ref> have opined that the marriages are acceptable under each state's respective laws.

==History==
===Foundation and early growth===
The Universal Life Church was founded by [[Kirby J. Hensley]], "a self-educated Baptist minister who was deeply influenced by his reading in [[world religion]]".<ref name="Handbook"/> Religious scholar [[James R. Lewis (scholar)|James R. Lewis]] wrote that Hensley "began to conceive of a church that would, on the one hand, offer complete [[freedom of religion]], and could, on the other hand, bring all people of all religions together, instead of separating them".<ref name="Handbook"/> With this aim, he established "a new religion that would emphasize what all religions have in common",<ref name="J. R. Lewis"/> creating in 1959 the "Life Church" in [[Modesto, California]].<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite book|title=The Modesto messiah: The famous mail-order minister|last=Ashmore|first=Lewis|publisher=Universal Press|year=1977|isbn=0-918950-01-5|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/modestomessiahfa00ashmrich}}</ref> He first held services in his garage, and incorporated the organization in 1962.<ref name="J. R. Lewis"/><ref>{{Cite book|title=The Modesto messiah : the famous mail-order minister|author=Ashmore, Lewis|date=1977|publisher=Universal Press|isbn=0918950015|location=Bakersfield, Calif.|oclc=5551316|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/modestomessiahfa00ashmrich}}</ref>

The ULC began issuing mail-order ordinations shortly after its incorporation. The church's growth was affected in part by social movements; during the [[Vietnam War]], a widely circulated rumor claimed that ordination would qualify one for a [[Conscription in the United States|legal exemption from the draft]]. Ordination requests increased dramatically, but the rumor proved to be false.<ref name=":0" /> The ULC and its founder, Hensley, were also featured in several publications during this time, including ''[[Rolling Stone]]'', which further increased public awareness of the church.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|url=https://kernelmag.dailydot.com/issue-titles/religion/11097/universal-life-church-ordained/|title=Inside the Universal Life Church, the Internet's one true religion - The Kernel|date=2014-12-14|work=The Kernel|access-date=2018-09-16|language=en-US|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180916130426/https://kernelmag.dailydot.com/issue-titles/religion/11097/universal-life-church-ordained/|archive-date=September 16, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> In the late 1960s, Hensley "became something of a folk hero among the young", particularly with college students, whom he would mass-ordain at speaking events.<ref name="J. R. Lewis"/> In accordance with the [[Law of California]] that exempts religious schools from accreditation,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cga.ct.gov/2007/rpt/2007-R-0023.htm |title=Exemptions from the higher education licensing process for religious colleges |date=2007-01-09 |access-date=2023-02-21}}</ref> he offered an honorary [[Doctor of Divinity]] degree from the ULC for a free-will offering of twenty dollars,<ref name="JOURNAL ARTICLE">Bryan G. Petkanics, Sandra R. Petkanics, ''[https://www.jstor.org/action/doBasicSearch?Query=%22free-will+offering+of+twenty+dollars%22+%22Doctor+of+Divinity%22 Note—Mail Order Ministries, The Religious Purpose Exemption, and The Constitution]'' (1980), pp. 959-981.</ref> including "ten free lessons explaining how to set up a church". By 1974, the church had ordained over 1 million ministers. Also in 1974, a federal judge declared that the ULC was qualified for a religious tax exemption.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://law.justia.com/cases/virginia/supreme-court/1974/730336-1.html|title=Cramer v. Commonwealth|work=Justia Law|access-date=2018-09-16|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180916163940/https://law.justia.com/cases/virginia/supreme-court/1974/730336-1.html|archive-date=September 16, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Later expansion and division===
The Universal Life Church ran into difficulties as new branches of the ULC were granted charters and began moving off in different directions. The Modesto group struggled to maintain control over these other entities as ULC affiliates grew in number.<ref name=":2">{{Cite news|url=https://www.modbee.com/living/article3118424.html|title=Universal Life Goes On|work=Modesto Bee|access-date=2018-09-16|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180916164008/https://www.modbee.com/living/article3118424.html|archive-date=September 16, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> There are multiple groups operating under the ULC name, most of which are unaffiliated in practice.<ref name=":1" /> During this period, the [[Internal Revenue Service]] (IRS) became suspicious about tax avoidance efforts within the church, eventually determining that Hensley, the Modesto ULC, and affiliated churches chartered under its name were promoting tax avoidance schemes within church periodicals. As a result, the IRS withdrew ULC Modesto's tax-exempt status in 1984. Over the next 16 years, Hensley and his family battled the IRS in court over disputed tax payments. The matter was eventually settled in 2000 when the Modesto group agreed to pay $1.5 million in back taxes.<ref name=":1" />

By 1999, the ULC had begun offering ordinations online. News coverage about journalists and celebrities getting ordained to perform weddings helped boost the popularity of online ordination. As more people became aware of non-traditional officiants presiding over wedding ceremonies, ULC membership rolls rose. Between 1962 and 2008, the ULC issued more than 18 million ordinations worldwide.<ref name=":2" /><ref name="Bishop">Lauren Bishop, ''Ordained for the Occasion'', ''[[The Cincinnati Enquirer]]'' (April 14, 2007), p. A1, A9.</ref> A large number of people seeking ULC ordination do so in order to be able to legally officiate at weddings<ref name="nytpersonal" /> or perform other spiritual rites. A 2007 article noted that "[a]bout 70 percent of people who become ordained through the Universal Life Church do so... to officiate at weddings".<ref name="Bishop"/> According to a 2016 internal survey conducted by wedding website ''The Knot'' and reported by the ''Baltimore Sun'', 43% of couples in the U.S. in 2016 chose to have a friend or family member officiate their wedding, up from 29% in 2009.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.baltimoresun.com/features/weddings/bs-lt-wedding-officiant-20170219-story.html|title=The new normal: Friends, family presiding at weddings|last=Britto|first=Brittany|work=baltimoresun.com|access-date=2018-10-28|language=en-US|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171013222806/https://www.baltimoresun.com/features/weddings/bs-lt-wedding-officiant-20170219-story.html|archive-date=October 13, 2017|url-status=dead}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Another example of a person becoming ordained through ULC in order to perform a religious ritual is that of a Native American in [[Cincinnati]], [[Ohio]], who needed such an affiliation to perform [[smudging]] ceremonies as part of the prayer ritual for other Native Americans in area hospitals.<ref name="Bishop"/>

Following Kirby Hensley's death in 1999, an organizational split led to the creation of the [[Universal Life Church Monastery|ULC Monastery]] (ULCM, also using the name Universal Life Church Ministries; now based in [[Seattle]]), which remains unaffiliated with the Modesto group.<ref name=":0" /> The ULCM formally split from the ULC in 2006 following financial, legal, and philosophical disputes between the two bodies<ref name="usatoday2007">{{cite web |title=Pa. judge nullifies weddings by online ministers |publisher=USA Today |url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/religion/2007-10-24-online-marriages_n.htm |access-date=December 27, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141113091604/http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/religion/2007-10-24-online-marriages_n.htm |archive-date=November 13, 2014 |url-status=live }}</ref> and began ordaining ministers independently.<ref name="dailyiowan2011">{{cite web |title=UI students serve as ordained ministers |publisher=The Daily Iowan |url=http://www.dailyiowan.com/2011/05/12/Metro/23511.html |access-date=December 27, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141113083317/http://www.dailyiowan.com/2011/05/12/Metro/23511.html |archive-date=November 13, 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name=wsj2008>{{cite news |title=Chapel Bound: Getting Ordained Online |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal |date=June 12, 2008 |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB121322275524265889 |access-date=December 27, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141228052618/http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB121322275524265889 |archive-date=December 28, 2014 |url-status=live |last1=Hodges |first1=Jane }}</ref>

==Beliefs and practices==
The [[U.S. Department of the Army]] publication, ''Religious Requirements and Practices: A Handbook for Chaplains'', summarized the doctrines of the ULC as follows:

{{blockquote|The Universal Life Church has only one belief. They believe in that which is right and in every person's right to interpret what is right. The Universal Life Church has no creed or authoritative book such as a Bible. Those wishing to learn about the Church can obtain its periodical Universal Life and other materials that it publishes from its international headquarters. No specific ethical guidelines except to do "what is right". ... The Universal Life Church is open and accepting of people of all religions. It is opposed only to those religions that attempt to deny religious freedom. Any minister in the ULC can ordain new members. ... The Universal Life Church has no specific [[holiday]]s, though local congregations celebrate a wide variety of them. There are two gatherings (conventions) each year in the spring and in the fall, at which the members and ministers meet for celebration and to conduct business.<ref name="Handbook"/>}}

According to Lewis, Hensley personally believed in [[reincarnation]], in a merely [[Historical Jesus|human Jesus]], and "in the reunification of all religions and governments under the Universal Life banner during thirty years of turmoil around the year 2000".<ref name="J. R. Lewis"/> None of these beliefs were doctrinal to the ULC, which allowed members to follow their own doctrines. The U.S. Army's ''Handbook for Chaplains'' also notes that the ULC "has a very loose structure", with those ordained being given "a set of instructions on how to form a congregation", but otherwise operating with complete autonomy. It further notes that those ordained "may perform any of the functions normally associated with the clergy, including the conducting of weddings, funerals, etc.", and that "[g]roup worship is not required, but local congregations are required to hold regular meetings".<ref name="Handbook"/> The ULC is noted to have no medical or [[dietary restrictions]], and no specific [[burial requirements]].<ref name="Handbook"/> With respect to military service, the handbook notes that the ULC maintains no [[Conscientious objector|doctrinal opposition to military service]], but "respects the individual opinion of its members".<ref name="Handbook"/>

==Legal status==
{{Main|Legal status of the Universal Life Church}}

The legitimacy of ULC ordination has been challenged in legal venues, primarily with respect to the questions of whether it constitutes a religious affiliation for tax purposes, and whether ordinations legally permit recipients to perform weddings in various jurisdictions. Lewis notes that the American [[Internal Revenue Service]] has generally assumed a negative predisposition towards the ULC, and has sought to eliminate the organization's tax-exempt status.<ref name="J. R. Lewis"/> A number of legal cases have addressed this question, as well as the ordination question, with varying results.

{{As of|2025}}, all U.S. states recognize ministers of the Universal Life Church as wedding celebrants except for certain counties in Virginia, with litigation with respect to those counties ongoing as of 2025.<ref name="Augusta"/> In those counties, the solemnization of a marriage by a minister of the Universal Life Church (who is not otherwise authorized) may result in questioning of the validity of the marriage.<ref name="cites"/> Historically, such ordinations were more broadly contentious, with Professor Robert Rains, writing in the ''[[University of Miami Law Review]]'' in 2020 that "even a reasonably intelligent (and suspicious) person could be readily misled by the ULC into believing that by becoming a ULC minister he can legally perform marriages throughout the United States, and beyond".<ref>Robert E. Rains, [https://repository.law.miami.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1188&context=umlr ''Marriage in the Time of Internet Ministers: I Now Pronounce You Married, But Who Am I To Do So?''], 64 U. Miami L. Rev. 809, 834 - 35 (2010).</ref> In Canada, ULC ministers are currently not authorized to solemnize marriage in any province or territory.<ref>{{cite news |publisher=Universal Life Church Online |quote=As of this writing, Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia do NOT permit ULC ministers to officiate legal marriage ceremonies. |url=http://www.ulc.net/index.php?page=wedding_laws |title=Wedding Laws By State |access-date=January 10, 2018 |archive-date=January 10, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180110174320/http://www.ulc.net/index.php?page=wedding_laws |url-status=dead }}</ref> In places where being a ULC minister does not legally authorize a person to solemnize marriages, ULC ministers intending to do so must also meet other requirements, which might include registering as a [[notary public]], [[justice of the peace]], or [[marriage commissioner]].

==Criticism==
The ULC has occasionally been criticized for its openness and ease of ordination. Some people, usually as a joke, submit ordination requests for their pets.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.petweds.com/article.html | title=You may now lick the bride: Canine clergyman helps household pets tie the knot | author=Cody Clark (Daily Herald) | publisher=Pet Weds: Pet & Animal Nuptials | access-date=2009-06-15 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081222071255/http://www.petweds.com/article.html | archive-date=December 22, 2008 | url-status=live }}</ref> The ULC has tried to curb the ordination of pets, but if the name on the application appears to be legitimate, the application will probably be granted. The ULC website warns against fraudulent ordination requests, including attempts to ordain pets: "No one is rejected because of their name, but we must protect the integrity of the records against those who fraudulently submit requests for pets, obscene names, etc. Applying for ordination in the name of a fictitious person or animal, or the submission of a person's name without his or her permission is fraud, and may subject you to prosecution!". In 2015, ''[[The New York Times]]'' wrote that the ULC "pumps out ordinations at an assembly-line pace, almost mocking a process that usually requires years of [[seminary]] study".<ref name="NYT">{{cite web|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/27/us/couples-personalizing-role-of-religion-in-wedding-ceremonies.html |title=Couples Personalizing Role of Religion in Wedding Ceremonies|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=June 26, 2015|access-date=August 29, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181024232120/https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/27/us/couples-personalizing-role-of-religion-in-wedding-ceremonies.html |archive-date=October 24, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of ministers of the Universal Life Church]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.ulchq.com Official website]
* {{Cite web |last=Prichep |first=Deena |date=25 July 2024 |title=The Story of the Church That Ordains You with a Few Clicks Online |url=https://www.npr.org/2024/07/25/nx-s1-5049940/the-story-of-the-church-that-ordains-you-with-a-few-clicks-online |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240726074956/https://www.npr.org/2024/07/25/nx-s1-5049940/the-story-of-the-church-that-ordains-you-with-a-few-clicks-online |archive-date=26 July 2024 |work=[[All Things Considered]] |publisher=[[NPR]] |access-date=26 July 2024}}

[[Category:Universal Life Church| ]]
[[Category:Organizations based in California]]
[[Category:Religious belief systems founded in the United States]]
[[Category:Religious organizations based in California]]
[[Category:Religious organizations established in 1962]]
[[Category:New religious movements established in the 1960s]]